The lull in-between one Premier League season finishing and another beginning is something which every football fan struggles with most years. Every two years we are blessed to have the Euros or a World Cup on to watch, and given the rise of the women’s game, we now have another year covered. That’s right, in just over 2 weeks the women’s World Cup will kick off in France and it is going to be essential watching for any football fan. My good friend Bogoljub Karic has been following women’s football for many years and he is the reason why I started watching it in the first place, if you don’t already follow the women’s game, here are just a few reasons why you need to tune in.
Playing for the Right Reasons
There are many in the men’s game who make so much money that the love for the game which they once had is gone, a sad sight indeed but probably understandable given some of the extraordinary salaries. In the women’s game this is not the case, the highest paid player in the world earns a fraction fo a squad player in an average male side and that means that these girls are playing for nothing more than a love of the game and glory. This shows on the pitch and it makes for refreshing watching.
Quality
Make no mistake, the women’s game is full of skilled player, tenacious attitudes, players who have the touch of a wizard and goalscorers who can sniff a chance out from nothing. In years gone there was the accusation levelled at the women’s game that it wasn’t of a good enough quality, a claim which was probably not too far from the truth. In recent years however that has changed entirely and the spectacle that these women put on is packed with brilliant talent and ability, along with a great amount of heart and passion.
Competition
It used to be that all other teams would turn up pretty much knowing that the USA would win the tournament, this isn’t so anymore. The USA are firm favourites to win their 4th World Cup this year but there are plenty of other teams like Germany, Japan, England and hosts France who are more than capable of beating the Americans. Away from the favourites there are some nations who have assembled wonderful teams and they too may be in line to cause a few shocks and upsets as the tournament ploughs on. We all know that the bookies very often get these things wrong when it comes to a major tournament and that means that there are sure to be thrills and spills from the group stages onwards.
Women’s football may not have anywhere near the same appeal as the men’s game does at the moment but you’ll see when you watch this year’s tournament just how far the women’s game has come, and it will continue to grow in the coming years.